Circus
by Midnight-in-Russia
Summary: Inspired by Britney Spears' "Circus". Ed has a second job. And what happens when Roy finds out about it? Sorta RoyEd.


Ed opened his eyelids slightly, peering into the dark hotel room. His eyes quickly adjusted to the lack of light and he spotted his brother from across the small room. The steady rise and fall of his brother's chest assured Ed that he was asleep. Ever since Ed had restored Al's (and his own) body, the younger Elric slept almost all day. It was unusual, but Alphonse could no longer stay away for more than three hours at a time. He also had difficulty walking. He still had to get used to his new body - there was no doubt about that.

Ed sat up in his bed, letting the blanket pool around his stomach. He glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand and sighed, knowing that he was probably going to be late for his job. As difficult as it was, he managed to work at another job apart from being a State Alchemist. He leaned over the edge of the mattress and pulled out a duffel bag from underneath the bed. He kept his night job uniform in the small bag under his bed so that Alphonse wouldn't see it and ask questions. Al didn't know about Ed's second job, and Ed knew it was better-off that way.

Ever since the two brothers had regained their bodies and missing limbs, they had just been scraping by as far as food and hotel rent went. Ed had always earned enough money for food for himself and the hotel rent. But now Al needed food too. Al needed clothing. Al needed luxuries that Ed had allowed himself in the past. The younger Elric had set his mind on getting a kitten, and the older Elric hadn't the heart to say "no" now that Al could actually feel things with his hands.

The younger brother's birthday was coming up, and Edward wanted to be able to buy him anything his heart desired. He smiled a bit at the thought of Al's smile as he put on his shoes. All he could think about was how much he couldn't give Al. He wanted to give his brother something nice for a change. Something instead of just a book or a card.

He contemplated different gifts as he walked across the town toward his job. When he arrived, he walked into the crowded bar only to be greeted by an excited Joe Briggs - his boss that doubled as the bartender.

"Hurry up, kid! We've got a special crowd tonight. Go change into your uniform in the bathroom. Can you believe it?! The Brigadier General is here! You know, Mustang?" Joe practically squealed, walking away toward the bar as he rambled on about "big spenders" and "big bucks".

Ed's jaw dropped. He couldn't believe his rotten luck. His heart thumped in his chest while butterflies tickled the inside of his stomach. Of all of the bars in Central, the bastard had to pick _this one_?! The blond fled the crowded room and hid in the bathroom, reluctantly changing into his uniform. God, he hated his life right now.

-------------

Roy Mustang sat on a bar stool after ordering a drink. The bartender taken one look at him and exploded with joy. He couldn't blame the man - he _was_ known to be a big spender, after-all. The Brigadier General didn't know how he had ever overlooked this place. Had it always been here? He decided to find out.

"So, how long has this place been around?" Roy caught the overly-excited bartender's attention. The man slid a drink in front of him and started cleaning glasses with a rag.

"About four years. But you certainly picked _the_ night to come. Our most talented performer is working tonight," Joe bragged proudly as he put the glasses on their respective shelves.

"Oh?" That certainly caught Roy's attention. "And how much is it for a much more..._personal_...time with the lady?"

At this, Joe grinned deviously.

"It's not a _her_. It's a _him_," he explained, looking at the bathroom door. No sign of the kid yet. He sighed.

"A him? Isn't this a bar for mainly...straight men?" Roy looked around, hoping he hadn't walked into a gay bar by accident.

"Oh, dear me, yes. But he's certainly prettier than any of the girls we've got. He's got the most talent and the guys go crazy for him. Either way, he brings in the most money out of anyone," Joe smiled as he watched the Elric walk out of the bathroom in his skimpy uniform.

"Excuse me," Joe pardoned himself and made his way over to Ed. The blond wore his hair up into a ponytail, letting his bangs frame his face. Perfect. That was the best hair-do he could have worn tonight.

"Alright, kid. If we're lucky, the Brigadier General will take a liking to ya. Do your best. Make me proud," the bartender wiped an eye as his lower lip quivered. He thought of how much money he was going to make tonight and practically burst out sobbing. Ed wasn't surprised, having witnessed this many times before. The blond was still nervous about Roy recognizing him, but if he wanted to keep this job, he had no choice but to get up on the stage in the middle of the room and put on a show.

"Music," Ed grumbled, walking to the back of the bar. He felt hundreds of pairs of eyes following him as he trudged over to the stairs. He clomped his way up to the heavy iron cage on the landing. He vaguely wondered what song they would be playing for him tonight. The DJ had excellent taste when it came to choosing songs for him to dance to. Ed had always appreciated his style. A fellow female poledancer held the door open for him as he clambered into the cage. She closed the door behind him and it locked with a _click_! The blond winced; he had never liked that sound very much.

"Ready, Ed?" She winked at him. He gave a nervous smile in return and felt the cage being lowered by two cables. The raised stage was drawing closer and closer. The music had already started. To his surprise, it was "Circus" by Britney Spears. He rolled his eyes. Perfect. Now the men would be getting pumped up for sure. He felt the cage hit the stage. The cage was at the end of the stage, so another poledancer took the key out of her bra and unlocked it.

_This is it_, Ed thought, gulping as the door swung open. _Well, Ed, let's show Mustang what you're _really_ made of_.

_There's only two types of people in the world_

Ed stepped out of the cage with both of his hands raised into the air. The wolf-whistles had already started. He kept his gaze off of Mustang and smiled at the crowded room. His leather shorts hugged him tightly as he strutted across the stage in his matching boots. He wore a fishnet top that was barely covered by a tiny leather jacket that was no doubt made for women to wear.

_Ones that entertain and the ones that observe._

Out of everyone in the room, he could feel a pair of onyx eyes glued to him as he curled a leg around the stripping pole.

_Well, baby, I'm a put-on-a-show kind of girl._

Ed climbed the pole and clamped his thighs around it tightly. He removed his hands and lowered his body carefully so that he was hanging on upside-down. The faces of drunken men surrounded him, leering at him and whistling at him.

_Don't like the backseat - gotta be first._

He grabbed the pole with his hands while he remained upside-down and spun his body around the pole slowly, rotating for all to see. Money was already being thrown onto the stage. His heart pounded when he caught a glimpse of Roy.

_I'm like the ringleader; I call the shots (call the shots)._

He righted himself again, staying right-side-up as he slid down the pole agnonizingly slowly.

_I'm like a firecracker; I make it hot when I put on a show._

Ed reached the ground, softly landing next to the pole. He scanned the room and saw no sign of Roy. He nearly sighed in relief before he put his back to the pole, sort of resting against it.

_I feel the adrenaline movin' through my veins._

He wrapped a hand around the pole above his head and slid down, making sure that everyone behind him got a great view of his ass. His ass was his moneymaker, and he knew it. So why not flaunt it? More money and tips for him.

_Spotlight on me and I'm ready to break._

Then, as Ed scanned the crowd just to be sure Roy was gone, he caught sight of him. The bastard hadn't left the bar; he had joined the crowd near the stage! And he was watching him intently...watching every move he made. Ed gulped.

_I'm like a performer, the dancefloor's my stage._

All Ed could think was "damn it" as he let go of the pole completely.

_Better be ready - hope that you feel the same._

As the chorus started, Ed faced his fears. He turned toward Roy and gave him his undivided attention. Those ebony eyes didn't even blink as they watched his subordinate do unspeakable things.

_All eyes on me, in the center of the ring, just like a circus - hot!_

Ed ripped off his leather jacket and threw it to his side, into a crowd of men. They all scrambled for it, and he saw Roy's eyes flicker over to them, eyeing them with disgust.

_When I crack that whip, everybody gon' trip, just like a circus - hot!_

The rest of the song practically flew by, but by the end of the performance, Ed was sweaty and panting heavily. Everybody - with the exception of the Brigadier General - cheered and whistled, throwing wads of cash onto the stage. Now came for the worst part of the job....

Joe hopped up on stage with a huge smile on his face. He lifted Ed's arm into the air and everyone immediately quieted down. Eager grins spread from one corner of the room to the other.

"Who wants 'im for a lap dance?! Ya can't take 'im outta the bar, though," Joe shouted, cheerfully, waving Ed's hand around.

"120 dollars!" One man shouted, waving his wallet into the air.

"130!" Another one waved cash into the air, catching Joe's attention.

"180!" A humongous man pumped his fist into the air. Joe grinned down at the oldest Elric.

_Oh, please no...._ Ed thought, looking at the hairy ape-man with fear in his eyes.

"200! C'mon Joe!" A geeky-looking man grinned at the bartender and winked at the blond.

"200! Going once! Going twice..." Joe's voice grew excited.

"300. Take it or leave it," a deep voice broke through the noise and everybody fell dead-quiet. Ed looked around for the man and found him. Roy Mustang. He trembled visibly.

"300! SOLD!" Joe gave Ed a bear hug before he collected the money from Ed's commanding officer.

"Can I take him outside? I just want to talk to him," Roy bargained with Joe. Ed winced; he would almost rather give the General a lap dance than talk with him about this.

"Nope. You heard the rule. He's gotta give you what you paid for," Joe gave him a no-nonsense tone and snapped his fingers behind him. Ed hopped off of the stage and walked around it to where Roy was.

"C'mon," the blond grumbled, leading the older alchemist over to the customers' chairs.

He pushed Roy down into a chair and looked at him, questioningly. When Roy failed to speak, he took the matter into his own hands.

"You've got me for two songs. Talk," Ed said.

Roy was _going to_, but he found it rather difficult when Ed climbed over his knees, straddling him in the armless chair.

"Uh..." was all he could say as he rested his hands on the blond's nearly bare thighs. He was kind of liking the leather shorts and the fishnet top.... He forced himself to focus.

"Why are you here, Edward?" He scolded, not noticing that his hands had started rubbing his subordinate's thighs up and down.

"I need the money for me and Al," Ed responded, rolling his amber eyes. He moved up further to straddle Roy's thighs. He could see that Mustang's member was actually starting to respond.... He furrowed his brows but said nothing on the subject. Instead, he formed a rather evil plan. As awkward as he felt, he convinced himself that Roy was just another customer. He clambered on further until the older man's erection was pushing up against his nether regions.

"Well, you could've asked for a raise," Mustang's tone was reprimanding, but his expression was completely different. He looked as if he was fascinated by Ed's outfit...or maybe just Ed. Either way, he bit his lip when the blond started bouncing on top of him. He gripped Ed's thighs so that the blond might stop, but he had no such luck. If anything, Ed bounced harder and faster.

Then, Ed stood up and turned around so that he was sitting in Roy's lap with his legs spread wide. Joe was watching from the bar with approval. Ed resisted the urge to roll his eyes and threw his head back over Roy's shoulder, still rubbing up against him. The first song was nearing its end, and Ed could feel Roy's breathing speed up.

The blond was hardly aware of everyone watching them, because Mustang chose to grab Ed's thighs and spread them wider. All-the-while, Roy was scolding himself on the inside. Wasn't he supposed to be putting a stop to this? Then why couldn't he control himself? He cleared his throat loudly. Ed turned his head to look at him.

"I'm making a new rule right now, Full Metal. You cannot and _will not_ keep a second job while you're under _my_ command. Understood? I'll give you a raise, and everything will go back to normal. You will never step foot in this bar again," he laid down the law with his husky voice.

"I can't just _quit_! Joe will murder me on the way out," Ed growled, slowing his motions.

Instead of answering the teen, Roy stood up abruptly, causing the blond to nearly lose his balance. The Brigadier General calmly walked over to the bartender and smiled pleasantly at him. Without a word, he pulled out his checkbook and asked Joe for a pen. He scribbled down a few words and numbers and handed it to the man.

"Ed is quitting. This is a...parting gift," Roy handed the check over to Joe, who was about to protest...until he saw the amount of money on the piece of paper. His eyes bugged out of his head and his mouth was practically watering.

"So, I assume that means you have no problem letting him go?" Roy asked, raising a thin eyebrow.

"ED! YOU'RE FIRED!" Joe shouted with glee as he spun around, waving the check into the air.

"W-what?!" The blond stammered, his amber eyes widening as he walked over to the two men.

"You're fired. Free to go. Go!" Joe "squee"ed and skipped off into the crowd of drunken men.

"Come with me, Full Metal," Roy ordered. Ed glared at him but grabbed his duffelbag off of a hook attached to the bar's wall.

They stepped outside, breathing in the chilly night air. Ed felt extremely underdressed - and that was an _understatement_.

"Uh...Roy? I don't feel exactly...comfortable walking around Central like this," the shorter alchemist gestured to his skimpy outfit. Roy blushed an amazing shade of pink and took Ed by the hand, leading him down an alley where no one would see them. After what seemed like hours, they reached the hotel in which Al and Ed stayed. They stopped in front of the entrance and avoiding gazes, awkwardly.

"I don't want to see you at another bar - especially dressed like _that_ - in my life. Okay, Ed?" Roy smiled at the clearly embarrassed teen.

"Alright. Heh. Thanks. Oh, and could you not mention this to Al?" His amber eyes pleaded the older alchemist.

"Of course, Edward. But it'll cost you," Roy started walking away.

"What do I gotta do?" Ed sent Roy's back a confused look.

"You owe me another lap dance on Monday, Full Metal!" Roy bellowed over his shoulder and sighed happily at the insults Ed hurled at him.

_Ah, music to my ears_.


End file.
